


my mirror my sword my shield

by anyastasia



Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Captain Puffy is Dream’s Mother, Family Dynamic, Fluff, Found Family, Gen, Hurt and comfort, Revolution, Roadtrip, Sleepy Boys Inc - Freeform, Wilbur Soot and Technoblade and TommyInnit are Siblings, basically just an excuse to write a tubbo and ranboo road trip, bc ao3 needs more ranboo and tubbo content, beetwt - Freeform, elements of time travel(?), no beta we die like Mexican dream, royal au, schlatt is tubbo’s dad, sleepytwt - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-25
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-16 14:15:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29701830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anyastasia/pseuds/anyastasia
Summary: four kings once ruled the antarctic empire, each one having dominion over one of the four elements. upon being usurped by an invader king, all four were banished to the four corners of the world, never to be seen again...a prophecy tells of the return of the kings to their former glory. when the prophecy falls into the hands of a royal outcast and an imprisoned ender prince, their extraordinary journey to free the kings can be the birth of a new world - or the end of all they had known.
Relationships: Toby Smith | Tubbo & Ranboo, Wilbur Soot & Technoblade & TommyInnit & Phil Watson
Comments: 35
Kudos: 158





	1. don’t forget, this pain and regret

**Author's Note:**

> ah yes, another multichap. i am determined to finish this one though! 
> 
> title of the fic is from viva la vida by coldplay
> 
> title of chapter 1 is from turn back time by derivakat
> 
> music i listened to for chapter 1: waterfall by toby fox :)

schlatt had always said that tubbo took the old legends that he found in the library too literally. ever since he was a small child, ever since they had first moved into the castle, his home had been the library; he would be eager to escape his lessons and scour the shelves for anything that piqued his interest. dyslexic as he was, with the words floating off the page and jumbling themselves up in front of his eyes, he was determined to be the most researched scholar in the land. he loved fairy tales and legends and tall tales - when his father wouldn’t tell him bedtime stories, he’d make up his own.

as he grew older, the library became too stuffy for him, so he brought his books outside to the sunny garden. there were perfect little nooks and crannies he could slip away into in the shade. the climate in the capitol was always perfect year-round - it was pleasantly sunny and warm in the summer, and cool and dry in the winter. in warmer weather tubbo would be accompanied by a tall glass of lemonade, and in the winter a steaming mug of hot chocolate. 

tubbo would reread the same books over and over again, crinkling the pages between his fingers and making the corners curl. the librarian knew him by name - it’s not like many other people visited, anyways - and always kept his favorite books under the desk. no one else checked them out. the librarian was a nice old man with a long white beard and kind lavender eyes. he’d let tubbo talk to him about whatever he liked - he was the only one who could look tubbo in the eyes and return his enthusiasm for literature. when he was younger and still struggled to spell things right, the old man would sit with him and work out the big words. 

tubbo was about fourteen when the queen mother found him reading in the garden one day. he was squirreled away in one of his many reading nooks - several small fountains spilled out of the stone walls covered in lattices, and most of them worked for a good seat. it was a hot july day, and tubbo had ditched his stuffy court clothes for a comfortable white blouse and trousers. his bare feet and calves were submerged in the fountain to cool off, and he had a glass of lemonade beside him. he was nose-deep in a book about a pirate captain and a mermaid falling in love - he wasn’t one to lean towards romance but the lore in the story was so good, he made the exception for this one - that he didn’t notice the woman stroll through the garden, spot him, and approach quietly.

“whatcha reading there, hm?” the voice came from outside tubbo’s worldscape, and he jumped about three feet in the air, promptly dropping his book in the fountain.

the queen mother lunged forward and grabbed the book before it could be fully submerged. her blue eyes were wide. “i’m sorry! i didn’t mean to startle you,” she said. “prince tubbo, am i right? schlatt’s son?”

tubbo nodded slowly, staring at the queen mother in half terror and half awe. queen puffy was a force to be reckoned with a court - as king dream’s mother, she had almost as much jurisdiction over the realm as he did. she used to be a pirate captain, a swashbuckler, before she joined her son at court and took over the role as the woman of the household. she was also, you know, tubbo’s aunt.

puffy smiled easily, as if she had been smiling at him every day. “right. come on, come on, get out of that fountain. i don’t think the groundskeepers would appreciate you sticking your dirty little feet in there.”

she held out her hand, and tubbo took it, letting her help him down. he was taller than her by a few inches; she snorted in amusement as he stood up.

“everyone in this damn castle is taller than me,” she grumbled, looking down at the soggy book in her hands. “ah, i’m sorry about the book. i can see if i can replace it if it’s beyond saving.”

“i’m sure it’s fine!” tubbo blurted, taking the book from her. “thank you for the offer, queen mother. thanks.”

puffy smiled again, and tubbo was blown away by how easy it was. “please, tubbo, call me puffy,” she said. “i’m your aunt, formalities shouldn’t be that strict.”

so tubbo had a second friend. puffy did indeed replace the book, and then got him as many as he wanted if he so asked. she often accompanied him in the library or reading in the garden; she too was friends with the old librarian. she told tubbo all her stories from when she was at sea - stories of mermaids and sea serpents and great monsters from the deep dark depths. tubbo asked her what was across the great sea - that was the only question puffy couldn’t answer.

“i used to want to sail into the great sea, when i was younger,” puffy told him one day as they sat sprawled on the garden lawn. “i wanted to be the first captain to sail it and live. but then, well, i had dream. plans changed.”

puffy always got a distant look in her eyes when she spoke about her son. tubbo used to think it was because she was sad that he barely spoke to her. he attributed it to motherly love, since it was what he craved so desperately. they were a lonely pair - tubbo missed a mother and puffy missed a son. they were matching puzzle pieces from different sets.

one rainy day, tubbo was confined to the stuffy library and puffy was holding court. tubbo had already reread all of his favorite books, and scoured the high shelves for anything else to read. he was supposed to be studying his arithmetic and star charts, but the librarian always let him neglect his studies for a while when they were together. 

tubbo sighed and slid down one of the ladders leading up to the higher shelves. “do you have anything new? anything from the ports?”

the old librarian chuckled and shut the book he had been reading. “nothing on your level, son. we still need to work on your comprehension sometime. it’s no use reading a book if you can’t read the words.”

“then give me one with pictures!” tubbo complained, stomping over to the table where his maths and star charts were spread out. he sat down with a huff, putting his head on his hands. “why don’t people make books with pictures anymore?”

the old librarian gave a curious pause, considering the cover of his book for a few heartbeats. then he reached under his desk and pulled out an old, old book, older than time, older than the stones they walked on, older than the moss growing on the underside of the fountains. the cover was blue and worn dull with use, and the spine was marbled with cracks. the edges of the pages were trimmed with gold.

the librarian’s bones creaked like old tree branches as he stepped out from behind the desk and set the book gently down onto tubbo’s table, on top of his worksheets. the book was wide and thick. tubbo stared at it with wide eyes before looking up at the librarian.

“does it have pictures?” he asked timidly.

the old man chuckled. “it does. listen, my prince. this is a forbidden story - all trace of it has been wiped from our history. do you know what came before the king?”

tubbo thought back to his history lessons - at least, the ones he didn’t sleep through. “um...the untamed wilderness? the creation of the elements, and the world? dream bending the air, earth, water and fire to his will before creating the end portal and the capitol?”

sighing, the librarian closed his eyes. “my, my. how that man is corrupting our history.”

“what do you mean?” tubbo quipped as the man sat down. “do you mean our history isn’t right?”

the man patted the cover of the book. his movements were delicate, like he was touching something that might disintegrate. “ _ this  _ is our history, my prince. and if you read it, you must never share it to anyone. if anyone in the castle finds out that you read this, you and i will both be killed.”

that hit tubbo like a ton of bricks. he swallowed thickly and stared down at the book, then back up at the old man.

“even the queen?” he asked quietly.

the old librarian’s eyes glittered. “even the queen.”

tubbo slowly looked back down at the book. with a slightly trembling hand, he reached forward and opened the cover with a velvet hand.

the first page had the title written on it in old, faded ink:  _ the four kings of the world. dated: 449 AC. _

turning the page tubbo was glad to be greeted by an illustration: four diamonds, all different colors - one white, one green, one blue, and one red. the text read:

_ before the world began, there were only the four elements. air, earth, water, and fire. they were untamable and wild creatures, making it impossible for any one deity to take over the realm in its entirety. that is until the four god-kings of the world appeared and harnessed the elements, bending them to their will and creating the world from the elements themselves. _

the next page showed a fearsome man with the head of a pig, crowned with the green crystal.  _ the blood king, technoblade, harnessed the element of the earth. he created the ground and tilled it, and created the harvest for he first humans. the potato is his sacred food and is offered up to him on his feast days. he is the eldest of the prince-kings, and is also known as the god of war. _

next was an illustration of a blonde boy with a mischievous grin, holding the red crystal like he was going to hurl it at someone.  _ king tommy wielded the element of fire; he was the only prince-king wild enough to tame something that was already wilder than him. he scorched his brother’s newly created earth and created the great burning deserts of the south. he crafted the sun to feed his brother’s crops and to let the humans have time to play in the light. _

the third page showed a much calmer scene: a man cradling the blue crystal to himself, looking out over a moonlit sea.  _ king wilbur controlled the element of water, as he was the calmest prince-king and could easily create dominion over it. he fed his eldest brother’s crops and battled the burning heat of his youngest brother’s sun. he created the moon for the humans to rest in, and created the great sea around the continent to protect the humans from outside invaders. _

finally, the last page showed a winged man dressed in green, holding the white crystal high above his head.  _ high king phil was the greatest of all the god-kings. he harnessed the power of air, and breathed life into the first humans. he separated the elements into their own dominions where they would have special power - the airy north, the watery east, the burning south, and the grounding west. he watched over the humans and kept balance between the elements and his sons.  _

tubbo went back and read the words he wasn’t sure about, then looked up at the librarian. “there were kings before dream?” he whispered.

the librarian looked pensive. “keep reading, son,” he said.

tubbo turned the page. the text read,  _ the four god-kings reigned over the world in complete peace for centuries; as immortals, they could never die. they created justice and law in the world, and the subjects of their empire were happy. that is, until an invader from far across the sea appeared: dream, the kingslayer, the dreamon, the crownbreaker. the man who would prove to be the downfall of the empire. _

_ dream attacked the god-kings with incredible force and within a few battles, phil surrendered to his enemy. dream swiftly seized power and wiped any trace of the god-kings from history. _

_ the usurper knew that he could not kill the kings - he himself could not control the elements by himself. instead, he imprisoned the kings in their own elements and locked them away, deep in the depths of the continent. it is said as such: king tommy is locked away in a fiery volcano in the depths of the burning desert; king wilbur is imprisoned under the sea in the east; king technoblade slumbers under the earth in the west; king phil controls the element of air from the frozen tundra of the north. _

_ to this day, it is unsure if the kings still live. many believe that dream slaughtered them in his first attack and the elements simply rule themselves; most citizens of the empire believe that dream is in full control of the elements. it is impossible for one man to harness all four; there must be balance. _

_ one day soon, king dream will fall, and the four god-kings will ascend to their thrones once again. all hail to the antarctic empire. _

tubbo stared at the last picture for a long time - dream standing in the center of the map, with the four kings in chains in the north, east, south, and west. dream was encircled by a red halo, and the capitol was red with blood. it was hard to wrap his head around it - how could dream, his cousin, be so malevolent? so violent? how could he tear an age-old empire apart and build his own on top of it?

“surely not,” tubbo sputtered, looking back up at the librarian. “how-”

“he erased the four kings’ history,” the librarian replied. “he replaced it with the creation story you’ve learned - that dream tamed the elements himself and built the capitol. that he lit the end portal and created life. this book is my family heirloom - it’s possibly the oldest book in this castle.

“i know it’s hard for you to understand now, my prince - but soon there will come a time when you realize that everything you have ever known is wrong. you will question your very existence and everything you know - and for that, my prince, you must be ready.”

tubbo left the library that day feeling sick. he crawled into bed that night and tossed and turned, unable to sleep as the story in the book kept playing on loop in his brain. the librarian’s words echoed in his head -  _ soon there will come a time when you realize that everything you have ever known is wrong. you will question your very existence and everything you know.  _ he fell asleep to a dream plagued with the pictures from the storybook - the creation story, the four crystals, and dream and his bloody halo loomed over it all.

it took four days for dream to find out about the book. tubbo and the librarian had spoken little of the book since the rainy day - tubbo had seen the book in a dark drawer under his desk. one day, however, he approached the library doors and found two guards standing outside the closed door. they crossed their halberds across the old wooden frame and glared at him through their helmets when they saw him approaching.

tubbo stopped in his tracks, holding his arithmetic workbook to his chest. “is the library open today?” he asked timidly.

“prince tubbo.” a deep voice said from behind him. “i had hoped to find you here.”

tubbo slowly turned. punz, the captain of the royal guard, was standing ominously in the hall, flanked on each side by three guards. captain punz was terrifying - he had a scar slicing through one eye and splitting his eyelid in half, turning his eye milky white. other scars crisscrossed his freckled face, dragging one side of his mouth down and the other up slightly in a lopsided grin. his silvery blonde hair - usually hidden by a helmet - looked messy and unkempt, as if he had been out in a breeze.

tubbo gulped. “hello, captain punz. what’s wrong? are we under attack?”

punz gave him a deadly stare. “quite the opposite, prince tubbo. come with me. the king would like to see you.”

tubbo’s chest filled with dread as punz grabbed him by the arm and led him down the hall. tubbo walked in step with him but punz’s grip on his arm was like that of a warden leading his prisoner to the cell. tubbo had no choice but to mull over punz’s words - that dream wanted to see him. dream had never cared much about tubbo - he had barely spoken to him, really. he was his only other relative besides schlatt and puffy, but made no effort to make an impression. tubbo’s experience with dream was about as much as any other servant in the castle - a brief glance every now and then, standing near him on a podium at events along with his father. he had never exchanged words or even a smile with the man.

but his relationship with his cousin was about to get very complicated as punz tossed tubbo to the ground in front of the royal throne.

tubbo had been in the throne room many times - he came here to listen to dream’s speeches and decrees and schlatt often made him sit in the seats to observe court. the throne was up on a high, raised dais, like a preacher’s pulpit, with two winding staircases on either side. the throne on top was made of pure gold and shimmered like a sunbeam in the light from the skylight in the roof. puffy’s throne, slightly smaller, was set a small ways behind his. tubbo had always dreaded coming here, since it usually meant droning speeches and being bored to death. now it just filled tubbo with a horrible sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.

“tubbo,” dream barked. he looked as intimidating as ever standing before his throne. it was said that dream’s unprotected stare would turn a man to silt, since he always kept a white cloth wrapped over his eyes at all times. along with his royal regalia, he wore netherite armor as what tubbo was sure was a show of strength and power. a crown with sharp golden spikes sat on top of his dirty blonde hair.

tubbo could feel dream’s angry stare from behind the blindfold. “tubbo,” the king repeated coldly. “does this piece of literature seem at all familiar to you?”

dream held up his hand, revealing the blue and gold bound book in his iron clutches. tubbo’s heart jumped into his throat. 

“well - um - yes,” tubbo stammered, glancing around. the hall was full of nobles that tubbo saw around court a lot - and standing at the base of the dais was his own father, looking furious and disappointed at the same time. oh, tubbo had really messed up something now.

“i found it in the library,” tubbo said slowly. “i-i like looking for books with pictures, and, um, that one had illustrations.”

dream chuckled, setting the book behind him on his throne. “you think this is a picture book, tubbo?” he asked seethingly. “no. it’s propaganda - an attempted rise against my reign. some people aren’t happy with how gracious and just my rule has been - they make up silly creation stories like those to try and usurp me.” he snorted. “it’s pathetic, really. people will make up all kinds of stories.”

dream’s face fell back into a scowl. “still, such works of rebellion are strictly forbidden,” he continued. “and those who read it are punished by death.”

tubbo went still. he had a horrible feeling he knew why the library had been locked.

puffy rose from where she was sitting beside dream. she had an unreadable expression as she reached out and grabbed dream’s arm, leaning close as she murmured into his ear. 

dream’s face shifted. puffy retreated back to her throne, avoiding tubbo’s gaze. dream cleared his throat, readjusting his slightly skewed posture. 

“you, however, have been spared from that punishment,” he said in a clear voice. “this doesn’t mean that you will go unpunished at all. there are, of course, other consequences for having such literature.”

tubbo walked out of the throne room that day on orders that he was confined to his room for a week, and all his meals and classes had to happen within the confines of his four walls. it wasn’t a horrible punishment at all - in fact, it made tubbo grow an awful habit of rarely coming out of his room at all afterwards. 

when he went back to the library after his confine was lifted, there was a new librarian. he was younger and much more cranky, and didn’t know any of tubbo’s favorite books like the old one did. tubbo began to avoid the library, now; he had practically memorized all of his favorite books anyways. 

three quiet, slow years passed. tubbo never forgot about the book and the story the old librarian had told him - it was always a nagging thought in the back of his head whenever he heard anything about dream. whenever dream erected a new statue or a new memorial, tubbo would think,  _ what piece of history is he covering up? what renamed statue of a king is he tearing down to replace with himself? _

reckoning came when tubbo was freshly seventeen. he had been a dutiful student, lying low and never trying to draw attention to himself. he had mastered arithmetic and languages but still never managed to read perfectly. he caught himself wondering that if the old librarian had lived, he would have been able to read better. 

two months after his seventeenth birthday, tubbo was dreaming of his family. it was a hopeful dream, where dream invited him to rule with him side by side. tubbo righted the wrongs of history, and raised the librarian from the dead, and it was all wonderful-

tubbo was shaken awake by rough hands, and he shot up in bed, sputtering. the person disturbing him clapped a hand over his mouth, putting a finger to their lips. 

“hush,” they hissed. “come with me.”

“puffy?” tubbo asked blearily as he was dragged from bed. his eyes adjusted to the dark and he saw that it was indeed the queen - her fluffy rainbow hair was hidden under a dark hood, and her furry ears perked out from the sides. 

puffy once again put a finger to her lips as she took hold of his wrist. “come with me,” she whispered. “you’re in grave danger.”

tubbo’s blood ran cold, but he was silent as the dead as he hurriedly dressed himself and was rushed out of the room by the queen. they didn’t speak as they tiptoed through the halls; it was past midnight, and the whole castle was asleep. 

puffy only spoke when they got out of the main castle, heading down to the royal stables. “you have to get out of here,” she said quietly as they rushed down the cobble steps into the stable yard. “dream found something hidden in that old storybook - a prophecy. a promise of the end of his reign.”

tubbo jerked his head around to look at her. “what?” he stammered. “i never saw anything like that.”

“that’s because the page is brand new,” puffy said, looking back at him. her eyes looked worried. “the ink was fresh - it told of a boy from inside the castle who would raise the four kings of the antarctic empire back to the throne.”

tubbo stopped dead in his tracks. “ _ me? _ ” he whispered. “it’s a prophecy about  _ me?” _

“tubbo,  _ come on, _ ” puffy hissed, yanking him along. “listen. dream and his soldiers are scouring the castle looking for you. you have to run - run as far as you can and wake the kings. you  _ must _ . the fate of the world rests on your shoulders.”

puffy guided him to her own stallion - the fastest of the royal horses, she said - and they saddled him in silence, working quickly. finally tubbo pulled himself up into the saddle, and puffy handed him a bag of food, money, and other supplies. a suspicious weight bounced against his thigh as he slung it over his shoulder - he peeked inside and saw the moonlight reflect off of the gold binding of the storybook. 

he looked back up at puffy. “you-“

she smiled devilishly. “you forget i’m a pirate, tubbo,” she said with a grin. “my sleight of hand is as good as it was twenty years ago. i found an old map in the library, and put that in there too - it may help.”

tubbo reached down and slung his arms around her neck in an awkward hug. she returned it, digging her nails slightly into her back. 

“will i see you again?” tubbo asked. his voice was watery. 

“of course, lamb,” puffy whispered fiercely. “i’ll see you when you storm the gates of the city with those kings.”

she stepped away and gave him one last look. “you’re more of my son that dream ever was,” she said, her own eyes going glossy. 

a shout from nearby startled both of them. puffy’s face hardened and she slapped the stallion’s flank. “go!” she hissed. “go now! i’ll cover for you. go, my prince! run! free the kings! save us all!”

the stallion whinnied and took off in a gallop. tubbo pressed himself to the horse’s neck as they whizzed past startled guards and sleepy sentries. they pounded along the drawbridge and burst into the city - bustling even now, in the late hours of night. tubby had rarely gone into the city; he barely knew the way out. he hissed out squeaky apologies as he startled civilians as he shot past. 

he thought he was in the clear as he rode into the outer rings of the capital, where it was more rural, with more houses. he considered slowing down - but a shout from behind and an arrow whizzing past his ear made him gulp and risk a glance over his shoulder. 

punz and a dozen guards were hard on his trail, having been alerted by the guards that saw tubbo’s escape. tubbo hissed a prayer under his breath and tucked his head closer to the horse’s neck, squeezing his feet against its flank to urge him on faster. 

the guards gave chase until they reached the massive outer wall of the capital - as tubbo rode through the wide-open gates (he remembered from his history lessons that the gates only closed when the city was under attack) punz and his men tugged their horses to a halt, watching tubbo ride off. tubbo felt punz’s cold gaze snag on his back until he rounded a bend and they disappeared. 

tubbo rode until dawn stretched her rosy fingers into the sky, and he stopped in a grove of trees just off the road to rest and water his horse. he was breathless, thirsty and hungry, and he collapsed to the ground as his horse walked over to a nearby stream. 

he spread out the map that puffy provided on his knee and studied it in the dim morning light. he had escaped the capital from the southern gate, and if he kept riding along this road, it would lead him to the burning bazaar - the last known settlement before the burning desert. but the map showed an illustration of a volcano deep in the sands - topped with a crown. 

_ that’s where one of the kings is,  _ tubbo thought.  _ that’s where i have to go.  _

he and his horse slept through the day, intending to only travel under the cover of darkness. surely punz and his men were searching for him throughout the countryside. tubbo would have to lay low once again - luckily that was something he was good at. 

he fell asleep holding the blue book to his chest as if it was going to be snatched away - it was a promise, a flicker of light, the hope left in pandora’s box. tubbo just had to find the courage to release it. 


	2. you’re a rather intelligent adolescent

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> tubbo finds the prince from another world. 
> 
> or, the beenboo roadtrip begins.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter name is from nicknames by dayglow :D
> 
> sorry if the pacing in this chapter is weird, i wrote a majority of this part on my phone and sometimes my writing is wonky on here. i much rather prefer typing on my laptop but school makes me type on my phone way more :] here’s a wholesome chapter to make up for the shitshow of a stream yesterday !!

tubbo found a wanted poster of him and his horse tacked to a fencepost on the side of the road after two days of hard riding. he plucked it off the nail and read it as the horse cantered on.

_ WANTED - Prince Tubbo _

_ Runaway cousin to the HIGH KING. Wanted for treason and plotting against the crown. Stole horse from stables on the evening of the twenty-fourth, and rode south of the capital. _

_ If you have any information, please report to your nearest garrison.  _

_ REWARD: 10,000 gold _

_ ALL HAIL THE KING! _

tubbo crumpled up the paper and tossed it over his shoulder as he rode on. now that his horse was wanted, too, there was no way he could go into highly populated areas. the stallion was too clean, the saddle was inlaid with gold thread - he would be found out in a heartbeat. 

he left the stallion tied to a fencepost outside a cabin he spotted on the side of the road late one night - it was a farmer’s house, he was sure. he hoped the arrival of the royal stallion didn’t bring any harm to the people who lived there - maybe they could return it or find a use for it.

tubbo continued his journey on foot but ran out of food after another two days. he was about two-thirds of the way there, he could tell - he had passed several of the landmarks that were on the map. the bag bumping against his hip felt significantly lighter now; he had plowed through all of his dried beef jerky strips and water was getting scarce now that he was nearing the desert. he would have to pray he wasn’t recognized in the burning bazaar and stock up on food for his long trek to the fire temple inside the volcano.

he had slept in a shallow dip in the ground near a cliff, and awoke as dusk was falling. the sky was stained indigo and marigold on one horizon, stormy purple and violet on the others. since he travelled at night now, tubbo had finally made use of all those star charts he had memorized - he was able to tell exactly which direction he was going by looking at the heavens. he could point out constellations in a heartbeat.

tubbo yawned and began to gather his things - then froze as he felt the pounding of hoofbeats on the road a stone’s throw away. he threw himself back down and pulled his cloak over him as he peeked through the scraggly brush.

a dozen armored soldiers rode past, all wearing dream’s coat of arms on their chestplate. tubbo couldn’t spot punz - obviously the captain was staying in the capital to command his troops from there. the horses thundered past, kicking up a great cloud of red dust, heading south towards the burning bazaar.

tubbo let out a slow breath once the hoofbeats were out of earshot. he crawled out of his hiding place and stretched - if that many soldiers were already this close to the bazaar, who knew how many more were coming along the same road?

he gathered his things and set out at once, instantly aware of the growling of his stomach. walking was tedious and boring - he had played  _ i spy  _ for the first day with his stallion, but that had gotten old quickly. he tripped on rocks and hidden dips in the ground whenever he tried to read the book as he walked. he normally just studied the map - he had the thing committed to memory, now. 

tubbo walked and walked and walked until he couldn’t feel his feet anymore. he was falling asleep upright, and his stomach was grumbling, and his vision was starting to go blurry around the edges. he needed water; his throat was dry and it hurt to swallow. his water flask was disappointingly empty, and it didn’t help that it had begun to get colder and colder at night as he neared the desert. the dirt was swiftly becoming sand beneath his feet. 

he had completely zoned out, walking on autopilot for ages, that he was only roused to consciousness by the bite of hunger in his stomach and the rosy pink glow of the dawn rising over the silhouette of a faraway city. 

tubbo stopped. he blinked. wait, city? 

the burning bazaar - the last stronghold before the scorching sands of the desert. it was a hub of dirty trade and auction houses; if you didn’t have a job, you’d be sure to find some form of one there. tubbo himself had never been, but he’d seen all sorts of merchants and traders come through on festival days, along with the ambassadors, of course. 

tubbo picked up his pace until he was running, his hood slipping down. the sky lightened and turned a hazy blue as he neared the gates, stumbling as he lost all feeling in his feet. the bazaar was so far away and isolated from the rest of the country that tubbo probably wouldn’t have to disguise himself here, but supposed it would be for his best interest. 

he approached the town and run-down campsites around the bazaar, slipping into the early morning crowd streaming into the city. even as dawn broke the sky, the city was already bustling - vendors were shouting across the streets, newsboys were running around trying to sell their papers, and pickpockets slid through the crowds like eels. tubbo kept a hand on the book inside his bag - it would be devastating if he lost it. 

he was exhausted as he broke away from the crowd to find a place to sleep for the day. he found a secluded spot under a tarp in a back alley; it was better than sleeping out in the open. 

tubbo curled up on the potato sacks under the tarp and opened the book, flipping it open. he skimmed past the pages he had already memorized to the blank pages that plagued most of the book. 

there, on one of the last pages, was a page that hadn’t been there before. the words read:

_ on the hundredth day of the thousandth year, _

_ when the moon and sun are at their peak, _

_ the four kings will arise from their graves: _

_ king of fire, buried in molten to the south; _

_ king of earth, hidden in war to the west; _

_ king of water, chained at the end of the earth in the east; _

_ and only then may the king of air be freed in the north.  _

_ king of dreams toppled by one of his own _

_ and a prince from another world _

_ beware, usurper, beware.  _

tubbo shut the book, taking a deep breath. it was self-explanatory - he and someone else (a prince from another world? what on earth did that mean?) were destined to overthrow dream. how he was going to do about that, he wasn’t sure. he fell asleep cradling the book again, the hubbub of the city reminding him of the lullaby of the capital. 

when tubbo woke, the city was still alive, and it was late evening. he crawled out from under the potato sacks and made a mental note to himself - find food, find water, and then get the hell out of his twisted city before someone mugged him. 

he stayed out of the main streets as much as he could, sticking to smaller vendors with lower prices. he stocked up on water, food, and bought himself a map of the desert to boot. the map didn’t have the volcano on it - he guessed it was to discourage people from looking for the kings - but he supposed that he could put the two maps he had together and figure it out. 

tubbo strayed into the main streets and was swept up in a crowd almost immediately. he was dazzled by the flags hanging across the tight alleyways, the lights strung from balconies, and the rugs hanging from railings. the bazaar was nothing at all like a capital. 

a loud, clear voice cut over the crowd. “ _ hyyyyyybrid auction!  _ come and see the finest hybrids in all the land!”

the crowd pushed and pulled tubbo with it, like an ocean tide - he ended up near the front of a crowd in front of a rickety outdoor wooden stage, framed with dirty red curtains. a messily painted sign over the top read  _ BAZAAR HYBRID AUCTION.  _

tubbo pursed his lips and drew his hood up tighter over his horns and ears. hybrid business was nothing he was new to - hybrids were mostly employed as servants, manual laborers, or just workers in general. most of the servants in the castle back in the capital has been hybrids - mostly common ones. cow hybrids, sheep hybrids, pig hybrids; ones you’d see every day. many hybrids were free, having bought back their freedom or been granted it by their employers once they reached a certain age. but most people - most cruel people - enslaved the poor creatures for life. “special” hybrids - usually ones that just looked pretty - were bought to stand in parlors and at parties to show off the buyer’s wealth. 

a fat, slimy looking man slithered onto the stage. “welcome to today’s hybrid auction, ladies and gentlemen!” he hollered over the ruckus. “let’s get right to the sales, yes?”

tubbo knew he should just turn away and leave, that it was wrong to stay here and watch orphans get sold out to greedy buyers - but it was like watching a horse race. he couldn’t look away. he watched as three cow hybrids and two pig hybrids were sold off to be servants and laborers. he had a sick feeling in his stomach already. he turned to leave - then the man’s booming voice rang out again. 

“our last purchase for today, ladies and gentlemen - the rarest of any hybrid, captured  _ straight  _ from the capital! feast your eyes on  _ this! _ ”

the crowd shouted in surprise as the last hybrid was dragged onto the stage. tubbo’s breath got stuck in his throat. 

it was the most magnificent hybrid he had ever seen - his face was split down the middle evenly, black and white, with a green eye and a red eye. two horns protruded from his hair, and he was dressed nicely - a loose white blouse, a corset, black pants and boots. his jaw was unhinged, and strange warbled shrieks came from his throat. both of his clawed hands were clasped with shackles, and he was dragged out to the middle of the stage by two hefty looking men. 

“an  _ enderman hybrid! _ ” the auctioneer shouted. “what do you think?”

the people around tubbo started shouting prices, wages, barters. tubbo had a death grip on his hood, staring at the hybrid in half wonder, half terror. 

the hybrid was panting with exhaustion as the men holding him forced him onto his knees. he dropped his head; he looked miserable, defeated, tortured. 

a deep tug in tubbo’s stomach roused him from his reverie. he tipped his head to the side.  _ what was that? _

the auction seemed to go on for an eternity - the hybrid stayed on the ground, staring at the floorboards and not once raising his head. tubbo nosed his way to the front of the crowd as discreetly as possible, and set his hands on the edge of the stage. from his proximity, he could hear the boy’s ragged breathing - and the minute sobs he was trying to hold back. 

tubbo leaned as close as he dared. “hi.”

the boy slowly looked up, a tiny movement just so that tubbo could see his eyes. tubbo felt frozen in his gaze before he let his head hang again. 

“go away,” he whispered. “just go away. i don’t need another one of you patronizing me.”

“i’m not, uh - whatever that big word was,” tubbo said. “what’s your name?”

the boy lifted his head once more, and tubbo was careful not to stare directly into his eyes. “what?”

“your name,” tubbo hedged. “do you want mine first? my name’s tubbo.”

the boy blinked once, twice. one of his pointy ears flicked. “why do you care about my name?” he asked softly. 

“because you don’t deserve to be treated like this,” tubbo said stoutly, nodding at the chains around his wrists and ankles. “you’re not an animal. you’re a person, just like me. what’s your name?”

the boy stared at him like he had grown two heads. after a moment of silence he mumbled, “ranboo.”

tubbo tilted his head to the side. “pardon?”

“ranboo,” he said, lifting his head a little bit more. “my name’s ranboo.”

“well, hi, ranboo,” tubbo replied cheekily. he gave him a grin. “i think - i think i can get you out of here, at least, i think.”

ranboo’s ears perked up. “you can?” he asked, eyes widening. “oh, please do. you have no idea what kind of terrible food they’ve been giving me.”

tubbo laughed, and was relieved to see a tired smile crack through the pensiveness of ranboo’s face. “is it dog food? is it literal dog food?”

“cat food,” ranboo corrected. “with rotten zombie flesh mixed in. absolutely horrid. oh, and dog water.”

“i can’t tell if you’re telling the truth, man,” tubbo said, catching his breath after laughing so hard. “but - see, i’m from the capital, and if the auctions here are anything like that, they don’t ship you off until tomorrow, right?”

ranboo’s ears went back down and the smile disappeared from his face. “yeah.”

“no, that’s good,” tubbo insisted. his fingernails dug into the rough wooden planks of the stage. “i can come break you out tonight.”

ranboo’s tail flicked. “tonight?” he echoed. “do you know where they’re keeping me?”

“i’ll figure it out,” tubbo assured him. “trust me - my whole life has been ducking my head and trying not to be seen. it’ll be a walk in the park.”

ranboo studied tubbo carefully, and he knew what the hybrid must see: a ragged boy with pale skin, a mop of brown hair under a muddy cape, with buck teeth and a tooth gap and a squint from the sun. in truth, tubbo wasn’t anything special. he was just a kid with a bounty on his head whose destiny was handed to him with wet ink and an arrow by the ear. 

“why are you helping me?” ranboo said finally. he looked sullen again. “you don’t know me. i don’t even know  _ you _ . why me?”

tubbo stared at his fingernails. “i really don’t know,” he admitted after a moment. “just - listen, it sounds cheesy as all hell, but i kind of feel like i’m meant to do this. i’m currently on quite the big quest right now, and i think you’re meant to be my awesome sidekick.”

ranboo laughed breathlessly. “nah, i’m no sidekick,” he said. “main character right here, baby.”

his last few words were drowned out as the auctioneer announced the winner, and the whole crowd cheered and shouted. the two men handling ranboo’s chains hauled him upright, and ranboo stumbled, falling to the side. one of the men grunted and struck him across the cheek, and ranboo wailed in pain.

“ranboo!” tubbo shouted over the tumult, trying to stay against the stage as the crowd surged around him. “tonight! i’ll come get you tonight!”

ranboo could do nothing but stare at him in fear as he was yanked to his feet again and pulled off the stage, stumbling over his chains. he vanished along with his handlers into a curtain backstage, and soon enough the auctioneer announced the bid over. 

tubbo ducked out of the crowd and stuck to the walls as he crept around the back of the stage, peeking under the tarp thrown over the entrance to the back alley. after a moment the two men leading ranboo appeared, hauling him after them. they dragged him into a back lot out of sight, and tubbo heard a gate open and then slam closed. 

he found a hiding spot nearby and dozed until evening fell. he would need his trusty cover of darkness for this plan to work. he couldn’t risk sneaking in and getting a lay of the land before he went in - he was going in blind, which was his least favorite thing to do. he hoped security wasn’t tight. 

the city was alive as ever as tubbo slid out from his hiding place around midnight. he backtracked to the alleyway and ducked under the tarp, keeping to the shadowy walls as he crept towards the entrance to the lot where they had taken ranboo earlier. 

peeking around the corner, he saw a wire fence guarded by a single man, and behind that, rows and rows of cages and crates, no doubt full of animals and hybrids up for auction or waiting to be sent off to their new owners. tubbo pursed his lips and dug his nails into the stucco wall. it was godawful and cruel, and some of it was most definitely illegal - unfortunately tubbo could only free one hybrid tonight. 

he considered his options. there was the stupid plan - he could run for the fence, try to jump it, and find ranboo before the guard could stop him. there was the sneaky plan, where he climbed onto the roof and he and ranboo got out without ever alerting the guard. or, there was a slightly more risky plan…

tubbo perked out from his hiding place and considered his opponent. he didn’t wear any armor, just a simple tunic, cap, and trousers. a band glittered on his hand, and he wore several chunky necklaces. he had a ring hanging from his nose. he looked, for the most part, completely ordinary. 

tubbo took a deep breath, sent a prayer up to prime, and took off from his hiding place. 

“mister! mister!” he wailed, trying to seem as childish and small as possible. “please! help!”

the man jolted in surprise, nearly dropping his spear. “eh? what’s that racket, kid?”

tubbo skidded to a stop in front of the man and wrung his hands. “please, sir!” he cried. “it’s your wife! she’s in trouble!”

the man stiffened. “what? what’s going on?”

“there’s a fire,” tubbo said in earnest. “and a robbery! at the same time! it was near your apartment, sir, but they have the whole block on lockdown, your wife sent me-“

“is she in danger?” the man demanded. his grip tightened on his spear. “i can’t leave my post-“

“she  _ insisted  _ i come to get you!” tubbo cried. “she needs you to come and get her out! the fire is dangerous!”

“okay, okay,” the man said breathlessly, obviously flustered and confused. “alright - just - stay here and make sure no one goes in!” he dropped his spear and jogged off, disappearing into the night. 

“bingo,” tubbo whispered, grabbing hold of the fence and lifting himself up and over. he landed quietly on the other side, stepping lightly as he crept between the cages and crates. from what he could see, most of the creatures and hybrids inside were asleep. a few were awake, but they just gave him a glance and looked away. 

tubbo wandered in circles in the lot for a while (there were a lot more cages than he expected, and that made him sick) until he heard a familiar voice  _ pssst _ ing him from nearby. he turned around in a few circles before he spotted ranboo’s red and green eyes glowing in the dark of a nearby cage. 

“i wasn’t expecting you to actually come,” ranboo said as tubbo hurried over. he grinned, and tubbo returned it. 

“of course, man,” tubbo said, pulling a pin out of his bag and sticking it into the lock on ranboo’s cage. “do your handcuffs and shackles have locks too?”

“yeah,” ranboo said, holding out his hands. the chains clanked softly. “i still can’t believe you’re doing this. i-“

“save your tragic backstory for later,” tubbo said, hissing in surprise as the lock clicked open and the door swung open on squeaky hinges. ranboo thrust his hands forward and tubbo set to work on his shackles, unlocking one, then two, then doing the ones on his feet. 

ranboo was quiet the whole time, rubbing his wrists as if he had forgotten what it had felt like. finally the manacles on his ankles fell away with a  _ clank, _ and ranboo stepped out of the cage, stretching up to his full height. he must be at least eight feet tall - he towered over tubbo, and had to lean down to give him a toothy grin. 

“holy  _ cow, _ ” he said breathlessly. “thank-“

“hey! kid!” a voice yowled from behind them. “you liar!”

“ _ run! _ ” tubbo hissed, grabbing ranboo’s hand and yanking him along. he risked a glance behind them and spotted the guard from before. the trick hadn’t kept him nearly as occupied as tubbo would have liked. 

“where are we running to?” ranboo yelped as he shook his wrist out of tubbo’s grip and easily kept pace with him. tubbo shook his head. “don’t know!” he gasped. “just get away from him!”

“got it,” ranboo said, and stole a quick glance around. “hey - c’mere!”

“wha-“ tubbo blurted as ranboo grabbed him by the arm and hurled his arm forward, throwing some sort of projectile forward. ranboo dug his heels into the ground, stopping himself and tubbo. he picked tubbo up (which he did much more easily than tubbo was expecting) and within moments, they were weightless, floating through a dizzying void, and then pressure was crashing down on them until they were whole again. 

they resurfaced in the overworld on a roof, and tubbo tumbled down the slope with a cry. ranboo shot out a hand and grabbed his wrist, and tubbo grabbed hold with his other hand before he could slide off the roof, his legs dangling off the side. ranboo smiled with a breathless laugh, and tubbo returned it until they were both cracking up as ranboo hauled him back up onto the roof. 

“i think that’s the most epic escape i’ve ever had,” ranboo said, leaning back on his hands. he rubbed his wrists again. “used one of my ender pearls, but that was  _ so  _ worth it.”

“i think i have you beat,” tubbo said, grinning. “i escaped from the castle in the capital on horseback, chased by, like, twelve guys also on horseback.”

ranboo whistled lightly. “yeah, that’s definitely more cool than what we just did.”

ranboo’s white side sparkled like snow in the moonlight. tubbo slumped down next to him, and they stared up at the stars together. tubbo recognized a few constellations at a glance - the ship, the princess, the salmon. after a heartbeat of silence he turned to look at ranboo. “your tragic backstory first, tall man,” he said softly. 

ranboo folded his arms underneath his head and didn’t return tubbo’s stare. “i’m from the end, obviously,” he murmured. “my mom - my mom’s the ender dragon.”

“ _ what? _ ” tubbo hollered. ranboo gave an uneasy smile. 

“yeah. i’m not half dragon or anything, though,” he added. “she said she found me freshly hatched from an egg - neither of us know what this side is, by the way,” ranboo said, tapping his glittering white cheek. “i was born with it. all i know is that i’m half enderman, and the dragon is my mother.”

ranboo shifted against the still-warm roof tiles. “a few weeks ago...my mother sensed something changing in the overworld. see, a lot of people think that the end portal can only be lit from the outside, but one side is in my mother’s domain, so of course she can. but only so many people can go through every once and a while - the summer equinox was a few weeks ago, and that’s one of the rare times the portal is open from our side. mother sent me through to investigate, to find out what was going on.”

ranboo swallowed thickly. “she...she said that if the king on this side was corrupt and cruel, that i should come back and tell her. she said that if i tell her he’s bad, that she and our army will come back on the winter equinox to take over.”

tubbo was silent. he stared up at the stars, trying to imagine a world where ranboo hadn’t gotten captured and tubbo hadn’t left the castle; would he be dead in a few months on an order from the ender dragon herself?

“but, my dumb butt got captured,” ranboo said, laughing lightly. “the end portal spit me out right in the middle of the capital, and i was caught within hours. i got thrown into that box and shipped off to this place.” he waved his hand around aimlessly. he glanced over at tubbo. “i gotta say, you’re the first human to smile at me and treat me kindly.”

tubbo blinked at him. “i just - wow. huh. sorry, i’m still trying to process that if i hadn’t left the castle, i would be dead.”

ranboo laughed. “well, now that we’re friends, i can spare you. at least - i never found out if the king was bad or not. is he? you said you lived in the castle. what’s he like?”

tubbo took a deep breath, in and out. “well, if it gives you any context, the king was trying to kill me when i escaped the castle.”

ranboo was quiet. tubbo scratched his ear and carried on.

“three years ago, the castle librarian gave me this book,” tubbo said, sitting up and pulling the book out of his bag. “it tells about four kings that used to rule this world, until king dream took over and banished them to the four corners of the earth. but - a prophecy appeared in this book, a few days ago. right before i left. it told about someone from inside the castle going to find the kings and overthrowing dream, finally. it’s - it’s me. i have to free the kings.”

ranboo stared at him. “wwwwwwow,” he said finally. he laughed lightly. “yeah, i’m definitely your sidekick.”

“but the prophecy also tells about a prince from another world,” tubbo said, sitting up and holding the book to his chest. “ranboo, that’s you. you’re meant to help me.”

“so i  _ am _ a sidekick!” ranboo cried, sitting up and immediately dwarfing tubbo in size. “sweet! i don’t like being a main character, no offense. too much trauma.”

tubbo cackled. “alright, tall man,” he said. “our first stop: the fire temple in the volcano. i hope you’re nocturnal. we travel by night.” he wiggled his fingers mischievously. 

they hopped down from the roof and snuggled up under a wagon, pulling a tarp over them. ranboo was cold, but tubbo snuggled right up to him, and ranboo stiffened for a moment before he settled his chin on top of tubbo’s head. 

it was nice, having a sidekick. 


	3. now that interstate is paved with memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the beenboo roadtrip truly begins, and not without some hiccups along the way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry about the short chapter!!! it was show week so i wrote this in between shows and during intermissions during my twelve hour shifts at school :) title is from roadtrip by dream stream it!!!

tubbo had severely underestimated the desert. 

he and ranboo had been walking for two days and a half, and they were already out of water. the thing is, it was all tubbo’s doing - ranboo didn’t need water often (“it’s an enderman thing, don’t worry”) so tubbo was the only one chugging through their water supply. all of their food was dried and didn’t offer the slightest bit of moisture. tubbo’s vision was starting to go blurry and more than once he had stumbled into a sand dune. 

the burning sands desert was the biggest thing tubbo had ever seen. the sand was red, hence the name, and very, very hot. tubbo thought he had known heat when he lived in the capital - june, july and august were often unforgiving in their heat, causing tubbo to take his studies and books inside to the cooler rooms of the castle. but down here, there was nowhere to escape, and the sun beat down upon his back, and tubbo’s cheeks and neck were already sunburned and peeling. 

night, in his opinion, was worse. the temperature plummeted like a stone until both him and ranboo were shivering. the dunes would still be warm from the day’s sunlight, so they would burrow down, throw their cloaks over themselves and pray neither of them woke up with a cold. 

“i think we might be walking in circles,” tubbo said breathlessly around noon of the third day. he stopped to lean against a rock, then recoiled with a hiss, palm burned. 

ranboo stopped and put his hands behind his head. “i think...you may be right,” he panted. his silky shirt was stuck to his back with sweat. “i think we’re seen that mesa at least twice before.”

tubbo dug the desert map out of his bag and squinted at it against the sun. the map had been a huge waste of money; the sand dunes changed all the time, covering up important landmarks that were marked on the map. tubbo was trying to use the stars to guide them, but they had to rest at night or they would pass out from exhaustion anyways. 

tubbo’s head aches and his stomach grumbled, and he set his hand against his forehead. “prime, i don’t feel well,” he mumbled. 

ranboo’s ears perked up. “are you alright?” he asked. “do you want to rest?”

“nah, nah, i’m fine,” tubbo said, waving his hand. “we can walk a little more. i think south is this way.”

ranboo pursed his lips but didn’t object as they continued to walk. the boy had been a wonderful companion - he talked just enough to be entertaining, not boring or too much. he barely complained and was a light eater and kept up with tubbo’s determined walk. 

it wasn’t long, though, before tubbo stopped and swayed on his feet. his vision was becoming double, and he staggered a step before ranboo’s hand was firm on his arm and pulling him upright. 

“tubbo, we’re gonna rest,” ranboo said firmly. “come on, let’s just - find some shade.”

tubbo murmured in protest but didn’t put up a fight as ranboo tugged him behind a large sand dune, where there was an ample amount of shade. ranboo dug around in their bag, searching for anything that could be water, but found nothing. 

“ranboo,” tubbo said after a moment. “can you tell me about the end?”

ranboo blinked at him. “the end?” he echoed. “well - it’s kinda like the desert, honestly.” he got a distant look in his eyes. “it’s all endstone - well, you don’t know what that is, hah - but it’s pretty soft stone, we build with it a lot...but, there’s not much except for white stone.”

ranboo cast his arm out across the desert. “imagine all of this, but white stone. and we don’t have trees - i was so surprised when i saw your trees were green! we have chorus fruit, which is about all we eat. it makes you teleport everywhere if you aren’t holding onto something, though.

“sometimes, my mother would fly me out to the outer end - scatterings of little islands off of the main one. i liked to explore them; i’d find all sorts of old cities and ships, and even dragons. mother never told me where they came from but i loved to fly them and explore new places.” his eyes grew misty. “i miss them. i miss my mother, too. i’m quite homesick - but the desert reminds me of home.”

tubbo thought of his home - the cold castle walls, the stern stares of his professors and his father. the warm way ranboo spoke of his mother was completely foreign to tubbo. he had never felt a warm hug, a soft smile. his father would never take him out to go exploring - schlatt was always surrounded by advisors and counselors begging for his words of advice. he had never made time for his son - he had simply hired his professors, critiqued his etiquette at dinner, and scowled at him from across the table at royal dinners. 

he wondered what is father was going to be like when tubbo returned to the capital with four kings and an enderman prince in tow. would he surrender at the gates, or stand with dream and fight alongside him?

“okay - tubbo,” ranboo said distantly, after a long time. “listen. i’m gonna - go try and find some water, i think? you seriously need water, but you also shouldn’t get up.”

ranboo smoothed the hair out of tubbo’s eyes. “i’m gonna go look around,” he said firmly. “i’ll be back by tonight. just - get some rest for now.”

“ranboo,” tubbo mumbled, eyelids fluttering. “wait...don’t - don’t leave. please.”

ranboo pursed his lips together. “i’ll be back tonight,” ranboo promised. “don’t go anywhere. i’ll be back soon.”

ranboo dug the water flask out of the bag and within moments was gone from tubbo’s sight. tubbo closed his eyes for a few heartbeats, then sat up, gasping against the heat on his neck. 

“ranboo,” he cried weakly. “wait - ranboo.”

the boy was nowhere in sight. tubbo felt his eyes fill with tears - being too emotional must be an affect of heatstroke, he thought hazily. finally he lay back against the sand and closed his eyes. the tears down his cheeks were a cold relief as he passed out. 

when tubbo woke up, it was dark, and the moon was high in the sky, and it was freezing. tubbo shivered and pulled his cloak around himself, sitting up. wasn’t ranboo supposed to be back by now? what happened? did he get captured? or eaten? was there some sort of terrifying desert monster out there that they didn’t know of?

“ranboo?” tubbo shouted, staggering to his feet and gathering his bag up in his hands. “ _ ranboo? _ ”

he stumbled through the cold night, looking around frantically for his friend. he tried to look for the shimmer of his white side, the glow of his eyes, but all he got were the rolling dunes of the desert. of course tubbo would get attached to the boy he had known for three days after saving him from an auction. 

the consequences of dehydration came back after a while of stumbling around the desert - his vision turned double again and his breath was ragged. he fell to his knees more than once, but always dragged himself back upright, refusing to succumb to the swirling sands. a freezing breeze blew and smacked him across the face, giving him a brief moment of relief. it didn’t last long before his foot slid into a hidden hole and he tripped, squeaking as he tumbled down a sand dune and rolled to a stop.

he lay there, panting, staring up at the clear sky. his eyelids were heavy, and his throat hurt like a burn. slowly he closed his eyes, succumbing to the darkness, thinking that dehydration was the dumbest way for the hero of destiny to die.

that’s what tubbo thought as he slipped into unconsciousness. surely the three jackal-headed men looming over him were a figment of his imagination, too.

-

when tubbo’s eyes finally fluttered open, it was to well-lit sandstone walls, warm torchlight, and blinding gold flashes. he groaned, rolling over onto his side, throwing an arm over his face.

“five more minutes,” he mumbled.

“tubbo!” a faraway voice cried. it echoed, as if they were in a large chamber. “wake  _ up, _ man!”

tubbo furrowed his brows and rolled onto his stomach, slowly opened his eyes and lifting his head.

a monstrous man with golden skin, wide green eyes, and a shark’s head propped up on his hands stared back at him, grinning at him with rows of razor-sharp teeth.

his smile got impossibly wider. “hey!”

tubbo shrieked and scrambled backwards, now fully awake. the man laughed and rolled to his feet, moving in slow motion with how tall he was. he soared over twenty feet easily, dwarfing tubbo and his measly five foot six inches. and tubbo had thought  _ ranboo _ was tall. gold glittered all over him - his skin had a shiny gold sheen to it, and his eyes glowed like emeralds. his wrists and ankles dripped with jewels, and he had gold bands wrapped around his neck. his intimidating presence didn’t match the huge grin on his face.

“sorry for startling you!” he chirped. “oh, here, you’re probably freaked out cause im twenty feet tall. hang on.”

in a flash of light, the man shrank to be slightly taller than tubbo. he offered a hand to tubbo, which he hesitantly took after a pause. the man tugged him to his feet with a bit too much force.

“welcome to the house of the undying!” the golden man said enthusiastically. “i’m foolish. what’s your name?”

tubbo glanced around. the whole building was made out of sandstone, gold and precious materials - the sun from outside came through skylights in the roof and made the whole place feel like a furnace as it bounced off the gold inlaid in the walls. hieroglyphs on the walls told stories of events tubbo couldn’t understand. a large eye made of obsidian and emerald blocks loomed over the whole room, which tubbo quickly realized was a throne room.

_ is he a king?  _ he wondered lightning-fast.  _ is he the king of the south? have i found him already? _

but foolish didn’t look at all like the king of the south he had seen in the book. the king in the book had been young and blonde and decidedly human - nothing like this shark-headed pharaoh he saw in front of him.

“i’m - tubbo,” tubbo blurted without much thought. he returned his gaze to foolish in time to see his eye twitch and his smile become slightly more strained and forced.

“tubbo, you say?” foolish said. it sounded like he was forcing it out of his throat. “well, welcome, tubbo! oh, before i forget, i think i have your friend.”

foolish stepped aside and two jackal-headed men - so tubbo hadn’t been imagining those when he passed out - came forward, dragging a boy between them. they let go of him and he stumbled a bit, before meeting tubbo’s eyes and giving him a huge grin-

“ranboo!” tubbo cried, rushing forward and throwing himself into his friend’s arms. ranboo gave a shout and lifted him up, laughing, spinning him around.

“i thought you died or something!” tubbo said as ranboo set him down. tubbo slapped his hands on either side of ranboo’s grinning face. “you wandered off all night and didn’t come back!”

“i’m sorry, i’m sorry!” ranboo laughed. “i was looking for water, then these guys all jumped me and dragged me back here-”

“they WHAT?’ tubbo hollered, whirling to look at foolish. foolish plastered another smile onto his face.

“people don’t often come down here!” he said. “it’s my duty to protect the burning desert, so i have to question every traveller that comes through.”

“what do you mean it’s your duty?” ranboo questioned. “you’re just some shark guy that lives in a pyramid in the middle of nowhere.”

foolish narrowed his eyes, and the atmosphere in the room changed completely. tubbo felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up.

foolish sliced his gaze across the room to the other jackal-headed guards standing nearby. “leave us,” he barked.

in unison, the guards hefted their javelins and quietly left the chamber. foolish turned on his heel and walked up the steps to his massive throne, and with every step he grew back to his colossal height. he sat down and tubbo felt the whole room shake.

foolish wrapped his hand around an ankh-tipped scepter that was resting against the throne. “have you heard of the wardens of the cardinals, prince tubbo?” he asked loftily. his voice had drastically changed from the cheery, enthusiastic tone it had been earlier. 

at the sound of his royal title, tubbo went still. “n-no,” he stammered. “i haven’t.”

foolish’s eyes glittered dangerously. “the wardens are four individuals to protect the north, east, south and west,” he said. “they’re handpicked by the high king to protect nosy little boys like you from finding the elemental temples and, in turn, freeing the elemental kings from their prisons.”

ranboo’s hand, which was wrapped around tubbo’s tightened. tubbo gulped. “um - yeah?”

“i am one of those wardens.” foolish gave them a look so fierce that tubbo was surprised he didn’t turn to dust right there. “the warden of the south, protector of the fire temple. i have direct orders from king dream to slaughter any man that comes through with intentions to visit the fire temple. and, i received an even more direct order from the king earlier this week - that a runaway prince might be paying me a visit.”

tubbo took a step back. the lofty walls were suddenly too small, he was penned in, ranboo’s hand was too tight in his grip-

“don’t go anywhere,” foolish growled, standing. tubbo was paralyzed - and he assumed ranboo was as well - as the warden stepped down the steps to stand on front of them. tubbo was sure that this was where their journey would end - foolish would kill them right here, where they stand, or deliver them back to the capital for dream to behead himself -

in a flash, foolish was back to his shorter height, grinning in their faces. “that’s why i’m gonna help you!”

tubbo blinked. “what?”

foolish let out a big laugh and leaned back. “i’m on your side, dummies! dream’s a big bully and everyone knows it. you couldn’t pay me to turn you in.”

ranboo’s mouth fell open. “what do you mean?”

foolish spun his scepter. “i’m eons old, you gotta understand that. i’m nearly as old as the four kings themselves. i’ve seen the rise of dream’s rule and the fall of the kings - and high king phil told me to try my best to become warden of the south before he was locked away. my domain was already the desert. he knew i could keep an eye on his son and lead anyone that wants to free him to safety.”

tubbo’s heart soared. “so you’ll help us?”   
  


“of course!” foolish cried. “that dream guy has been pushing us wardens around for ages. we’re supposed to keep tabs on the cardinal provinces for him, but then he turns around and accuses us of ruling it in his stead.” he rolled his emerald eyes. “hypocrite.”

“how have i never heard of the wardens if i’ve lived in the castle my whole life?” tubbo asked.

foolish shrugged. “beats me. if you’ve heard of anyone, you’ve probably heard of eret - they’re the warden of the east and easily the richest person in the world. they’ve got a castle, three mansions, the whole nine yards. but you probably haven’t heard the best part - they’re the ringleader of an underground revolution they’ve been organizing for years. your quest to awaken the kings is a godsend to their cause.”

tubbo’s mouth was hanging open. “how - what-”

“there’s a reason it’s called  _ underground,  _ tubbo,” foolish chided. “that means that no one in the castle can know.”

foolish waved his hand dismissively. “anyways - you two can leave tonight, when it gets cooler. i can give you as many supplies as you need.”

“water,” tubbo and ranboo blurted at the same time. they exchanged a glance, the burst out laughing.

the rest of the day at the house of the undying was the most pleasant one tubbo had had since he had run away from the capital. they lounged about by foolish’s oasis pool, sipping coconut milk and chattering to themselves. at some point foolish came out and sat with them, and tubbo asked him what he remembered about the kings. 

foolish’s gaze grew distant. “phil was the high king,” he said. “he was all of the prince-king’s father. he cared for them so much - he was the last king to fall, because he wanted to try to save his sons from their imprisonment.”

foolish twisted his scepter in his hand. “prince tommy was the youngest, and man, he was a force to be reckoned with. he would run through the castle day and night, scaring all the servants with his fire spectacle. he had the loudest mouth of anyone i knew. he was so young, and so desperate to fight in the war. phil knew that if he fought, he would cause more harm to the empire than good, so they tried to hide him away. it didn’t work - dream captured tommy and used him to force the other prince-kings to submit and turn themselves in.”

tubbo sipped his coconut milk noisily. “so, king tommy - that’s the king that’s imprisoned in the fire temple?”

foolish nodded. “yes. it’s going to be difficult to free him - as far as i know, he’s trapped  _ inside  _ the volcano. however, the fire temple has been abandoned for ages. mostly on dream’s command. he doesn’t want even his own guards to occupy it, for fear that one of them may get too curious and free tommy.”

the day cooled off as the sun fell from the sky, and by the time it was falling behind the sand dunes, foolish was handing them as many supplies as they need and a map to the temple. he hugged them both - which tubbo could tell ranboo was uncomfortable with - patted them on the shoulders and sent them on their way. 

“that felt like a fever dream,” ranboo said as they were a decent ways away. “was he a shark? in the desert?”

tubbo laughed. “i guess?” he hedged. “i’m surprised i had never heard of the wardens. i haven’t even heard of that eastern warden guy he mentioned.”

they walked through the night, thankful for the chilly air. as the morning sun rose, the sand beneath their feet became more packed until tubbo felt carved sandstone under their feet. 

the sun rose and illuminated the towering mountain in front of them - steam rose from the peak and tubbo swore he felt the ground rumble beneath him. 

ranboo’s hand found tubbo’s. “that’s it, then?” he said softly. “the fire temple is in there?”

tubbo nodded. “yeah. that’s it. that’s where king tommy is.”

they shared a nervous glance, before taking the first step towards their destiny. 


End file.
